The Thin Line
by KawaiiTenshi27
Summary: the rating is for future chapters. mush and angst hopefully. eventually YxK
1. Breathless

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fruits Basket or anything else, and seem to be making no progress in such a happy direction, no matter _how_ many times I put Kyo and the others on my wish list ::pauses to sob softly:: anyway, don't sue me, 'cuz I have nothing to give you anyway, except maybe some dead pencils, which you can have for free if you'd like to go through my garbage

**Warning:** fluffy cotton candy and citrusy goodness. Shounen-ai, yaoi, whatever. The rating is for safety measures, I don't know what the rest of this is going to be like.

**Thin Line**

**Ch. 1 – Breathless**

The silver-haired Prince of Kaibara High lay comfortable stretched out on his bed, reading a new book. He was thoroughly enjoying his rare afternoon with the house to himself; Shigure had run off to visit Hatori – and escape his editor – and Honda-san was at work. Even the stupid cat had managed to find somewhere else to be. It was perfect, and Yuki was relishing the thought of several hours of peace and quiet.

A sigh of contentment had barely escaped his lips when the blissful stillness was shattered by the slamming of the screen door and a pair of feet stomping around on the ground floor.

Yuki's jaw clenched and his hands tightened on his book.

_Great. Now _he_'s home._ The cat's very presence was irksome. He was loud and obnoxious and stubborn, with a temper that matched his fiery red hair and a sharp tongue that went well with his quick crimson eyes. But despite all that, or maybe even because of it, he had friends, real friends, to laugh and fool around with, to talk to. It was so _easy_ for him. Maybe he couldn't be part of the zodiac, maybe he couldn't be accepted by the Sohma family, but he was accepted by everyone else.

Yuki knew he was jealous, and he hated the cat for making him feel such a petty emotion. He knew both the jealousy and the hate were beneath him, but he couldn't fight it, and that made him hate the cat even more.

The noisy footsteps climbed the stairs and drew closer along the corridor.

Yuki felt himself tense as they neared his door, seemed to pause just outside, then resumed their trek down the hall, even louder than before. As the cat's door slid open and slammed shut again, the silver-haired boy released the breath he just realized he had been holding. With an effort, he made himself relax.

_With an effort? Why would it take an effort? Why on earth was he so tense anyway? The cat wouldn't dare come in Yuki's private room, had never even had the nerve to open the door. He might yell from outside, but he would never actually break the sanctity of Yuki's bedroom. No matter how badly he wanted to fight._

_So was it the possibility of a fight that had made Yuki so tense? Impossible! The cat couldn't touch him – not that he ever _really_ tried, but still, Yuki was sure he was stronger than the stupid cat. So _why

_Whatever the reason,_ Yuki decided, _it was the stupid cat's fault. And that's the end of it._

Having come to a conclusion, Yuki turned his attention back to his book.

He was just settling back into the peace and calm he'd felt before the cat's disruptive return when he heard noise from the roof. The sounds were soft – if it hadn't been for the deep silence that permeated the rest of the house, Yuki never would have heard them. But he _could_ hear them, and they were slowly, slowly, slowly driving him insane.

With an irritated growl – a sound more commonly heard from the cat, which Yuki did _not_ appreciate hearing from his own throat – the silver-haired Sohma threw his book forcefully aside and rolled off his bed, too upset for the bother of being graceful when no one else could see him anyway.

He marched to his door (a Prince never stomps) and yanked it open. He practically stormed to the roof's ladder, which he climbed swiftly.

The angry words on his lips died as he came over the edge of the roof.

There, lying on his back, staring up at the sky, was Kyo, hair blazing brilliantly in the light of the setting sun.

Yuki felt the breath catch in his throat. Much as he hated the cat, he had to admit that the picture before him was beautiful.

He must have heard the soft gasp, because the flaming head turned towards the sound. The half-dreamy expression on Kyo's face immediately darkened.

"What the hell do _you_ want, you damn rat?" came the low demand.

Yuki opened his mouth to respond, then paused, suddenly uncertain what to say…

**A/N:** I haven't finished an outline for this one yet, just lots of bits and pieces, so no clue where it's really going. If you've got ideas or requests, feel free to share! They don't do anyone any good sitting in your dirty little heads, they're much better off in mine ::laughs:: kidding! Kidding! I'd love to read your work too, but I always appreciate help on mine, even if it's just reviews… hey, what do you know, reviews! While we're on that subject, PLEASE REVIEW! They HELP! Really they do. Even if it's criticism. Just, please, be fair. If you don't like the pairings or whatever, TOO BAD! If you have a problem with my technique, or something, though, please let me know. Constructive criticism is as appreciated as praise (or nearly as appreciated!) Thanks for reading!

(Oh, and the chappy title "Breathless" is a song by the Corrs!)


	2. Mouth

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fruits Basket or anything else, and seem to be making no progress in such a happy direction, no matter _how_ many times I put Kyo and the others on my wish list ::pauses to sob softly:: anyway, don't sue me, 'cuz I have nothing to give you anyway, except maybe some dead pencils, which you can have for free if you'd like to go through my garbage

**Warning:** fluffy cotton candy and citrusy goodness. Shounen-ai, yaoi, whatever. The rating is for safety measures, I don't know what the rest of this is going to be like.

**Thin Line**

…

Yuki opened his mouth to respond, then paused, suddenly uncertain what to say…

_I jump on you, you jump on me  
Push me out,  
And even though you know I love you,  
I'd be inclined to slap you in the mouth  
When I kiss your salty lips  
You will feel a little crazy,  
but for me  
_

**Ch. 2 – Mouth**

… "Well?" Kyo asked again after a long pause.

The rat just stared.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing," came the hasty response, and the silver head disappeared as the rat retreated back into the house. But not before Kyo had seen pink tingeing that pale skin.

Kyo growled and launched himself off the roof after the rat. He caught the other boy in the hallway and spun him around, slamming him into the wall.

"What?" the rat asked, face still heated and red, but voice cold.

"You tell me," Kyo snarled, fisting a hand in the rat's shirt.

The smaller boy raised a delicate brow, and brushed at Kyo's hand.

An electric shock raced from skin to skin and Kyo let go with a startled gasp. "What the hell – ?" he slammed the other boy back against the wall – by his cloth-covered shoulders.

"Get your hands off me, you stupid cat," the rat said, dangerously calm.

"Make me," Kyo hissed.

A moment later, he regretted his words when the rat used a foot to sweep Kyo's legs out from under him, dumping the younger boy unceremoniously on his ass.

"You – you damn rat!" Kyo spluttered, jumping to his feet once again, fists clenched.

"Why don't you just stay down?" the silver-haired boy wondered, a not in his voice that would be considered a whine in anyone else. He shook his head, and glided off towards his room.

"Don't you _dare_ walk away from me!" Kyo threw himself after his nemesis and tackled him to the ground, pinning him to the floor.

In a flash, the rat had twisted in Kyo's grasp, and flipped their positions, so he was holding the redhead down.

"You never learn." He sounded almost sad. "Just give up already."

"Never!" Kyo struggled, but was unable to budge the stronger boy.

"You'll never win, you know. You're too emotional. You let your feelings take charge." The rat seemed to consider something. "Figures the cat'd be a redhead," he said softly, more to himself than to the squirming boy trapped beneath him.

Still holding Kyo in place with one hand, the rat lifted his other hand and gently brushed the orange-colored locks out of Kyo's face, an almost soft look in his dark eyes.

Kyo jerked, startled. "– the hell?"

The rat's eyes went hard as Kyo flinched away from his touch, and he grabbed a handful of the younger boy's hair, yanking his head back fiercely. "Stay away from me," he warned. He gave the other boy's head a rough shake for added measure, released him, and rose in one swift motion. Then he was gone.

Kyo didn't move for a long moment.

_What the hell was that?_ he wondered, staring up at the ceiling.

The rat had actually been offended when Kyo had tried to pull away from him. Kyo tried to remember if Yuki had ever acted like that before, half expecting to come up blank. But once he started thinking, memories started to crowd. Little things: strange looks, odd sighs, unaccountably soft touches – Yuki never seemed to use his full strength. And the boy blushed far too easily for someone with so cold a personality.

And what about Haru? Kyo had heard parts of several arguments, most involving the rat telling Haru to "leave me alone," and "stay away," however, now that he thought about it, he was sure he'd heard Yuki's uncharacteristically forceful command of "stay the hell away from _him_," during the cow's last visit to Shigure's house, and, though he hadn't previously connected the command with Haru's long absence, Kyo couldn't recall having seen a single hair of Haru's multicolored head since.

So, after all these years, maybe Yuki didn't hate him after all.

Interesting.

Well, there was one sure-fire way to test this rapidly growing theory, and if it was wrong, well, it wouldn't change much. No matter how angry such tactics might make him, Yuki wasn't the kind of person to tell anyone about them. So either way, it would stay between the two, and Kyo would have his answer.

The redhead sat up, considering the best way of approaching such an attack.

At last, he stood. Surprise was best, and now was as good a time as any, while the house was still empty of any potential witnesses.

Moving as quietly as he could, he tiptoed to the rat's room and eased the door open.

Yuki was lying on his bed, reading a book. He seemed almost sulky, but it didn't seem to have anything to do with the novel in his hands.

Kyo stepped inside the room and shut the door – hard.

Yuki sat up abruptly, letting his book drop, and was on his feet and facing the sun-tanned boy in less than a second.

"What do you want?" the silver-haired boy demanded.

"To ask you the same," Kyo replied, slowly moving farther into the room.

"What…?" Yuki began to ask, but Kyo was already in motion, closing the distance between them with a few swift steps.

Kyo grasped Yuki firmly around the waist and dragged him forward, bringing their bodies flush against each other and their lips together.

Yuki's mouth opened in a gasp and Kyo's tongue darted out to duel with the rat's.

The kiss rapidly grew in intensity, then Kyo felt a sharp pain – Yuki's teeth had pierced his tongue.

The redhead snapped his own teeth down, felt the other boy wince, and pulled back.

Both were panting slightly.

"What was – "

"You bit my tongue, you damn rat," Kyo hissed.

Yuki's eyes went wide for a brief moment, then narrowed, and he yanked the younger boy against him again. Their blood mingled, salty and sweet.

Kyo felt crazy and drunk on it all, and the world spun.

**A/N:** very upset by the lack of reviews for this story ::sobs quietly::  
I know it's pretty crappy, and I probably don't give this fic the attention I should, but if I don't get reviews, I'm left to assume no one is reading, in which case there's really no point in posting anymore, anyway, is there? So if you want me to continue posting, please review!


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